Who do you turn to when life gets hard? I am so grateful for friends and family who listen to my struggles, offer guidance, and pray with me. They are a great source of comfort. I am ashamed to say that for too much of my life, I overlooked the most important source for life-changing peace, comfort, and wisdom. Don’t get me wrong, I have read my Bible all my life, but I didn’t really utilize it for what it is meant to be until I was facing some incredibly dark days. When I finally realized the depth of what God’s word truly had to offer, I learned that He has provided everything I need in His word to help me walk through the deepest darkest valleys, the most heart-wrenching of circumstances. In fact, His word has become the sacred place I go to anytime that I am challenged by life. Every time I dig into scriptures I find just what I need to bring me comfort, peace, and the strength to persevere. I will always remember the day I found this passage:
He said: “Listen, King Jehoshaphat and all who live in Judah and Jerusalem! This is what the Lord says to you: ‘Do not be afraid or discouraged because of this vast army. For the battle is not yours, but God’s. Tomorrow march down against them. They will be climbing up by the Pass of Ziz, and you will find them at the end of the gorge in the Desert of Jeruel. You will not have to fight this battle. Take up your positions; stand firm and see the deliverance the Lord will give you, Judah and Jerusalem. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged. Go out to face them tomorrow, and the Lord will be with you.’” 2 Chronicles 20:15-17 (emphasis mine)
King Jehoshaphat was facing an actual physical war brought on by the sons of Moab and the sons of Ammon. What did the Lord say to him, “the battle is not yours, but God’s….. Take up your positions; stand firm and see the deliverance the Lord will give you.” After I read that statement, I remember standing up from my chair leaning over the table, and reading it again, thinking that I had misread those words “the battle is not yours.”
“Lord, is this true for me too?” I stood at my kitchen table with my Bible open to this passage talking to Him out loud. “Are you sure, Lord? Because if this is true, it will be a game changer.” The battle I was facing felt very much like it was mine. I was exhausted. Weary from fighting so hard. How could it be that it wasn’t my battle? I was seeking relief and found it in this tucked away passage of 2 Chronicles. God does not need me to fight His battles; nor do I have to have all of the answers. In fact, I don’t have all the answers and never will. I need only to stand firm with my eyes on the Lord and watch Him work.
The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still. Exodus 14:14
Is it really that easy? Well, yes and no. It’s easy in that that is all God asks of us. If you are like me, it’s not easy because I am not prone to just standing still and watching someone else work. When there is a problem, I want to take action, not just stand and watch. King Jehoshaphat’s approach to this impending war is a great example for us to follow. We skipped the first part of the chapter, the king’s action that prompted God’s response. Let’s go back to the beginning of the chapter, and see what the king did when he learned that a war was coming to him:
After this, the Moabites and Ammonites with some of the Meunites came to wage war against Jehoshaphat. Some people came and told Jehoshaphat, “A vast army is coming against you from Edom, from the other side of the Dead Sea. It is already in Hazezon Tamar” (that is, En Gedi). Alarmed, Jehoshaphat resolved to inquire of the Lord, and he proclaimed a fast for all Judah. The people of Judah came together to seek help from the Lord; indeed, they came from every town in Judah to seek him. Then Jehoshaphat stood up in the assembly of Judah and Jerusalem at the temple of the Lord in the front of the new courtyard and said: “Lord, the God of our ancestors, are you not the God who is in heaven? You rule over all the kingdoms of the nations. Power and might are in your hand, and no one can withstand you. Our God, did you not drive out the inhabitants of this land before your people Israel and give it forever to the descendants of Abraham your friend? They have lived in it and have built in it a sanctuary for your Name, saying, ‘If calamity comes upon us, whether the sword of judgment, or plague or famine, we will stand in your presence before this temple that bears your Name and will cry out to you in our distress, and you will hear us and save us.’ “But now here are men from Ammon, Moab and Mount Seir, whose territory you would not allow Israel to invade when they came from Egypt; so they turned away from them and did not destroy them. See how they are repaying us by coming to drive us out of the possession you gave us as an inheritance. Our God, will you not judge them? For we have no power to face this vast army that is attacking us. We do not know what to do, but our eyes are on you.” 2 Chronicles 20:1-12
King Jehoshaphat heard about the impending war and stood before the people and prayed to the Lord. What a powerful prayer! Did you notice how he started that prayer? He acknowledged the sovereignty and power of the Lord Almighty. He acknowledged what the Lord had already done for them. He made his request, and then he put his faith and trust in the Lord – “our eyes are on you.”
We know that war is upon us. We know that God is sovereign. Let’s turn our eyes on Him and face those battles with the same confidence that Jehoshaphat had when he faced off against the sons of Moab and Ammon. The battle is not ours; we only need to take up our position and stand firm. Just like God promised the king, He will be with us too.
With Eyes on the Cross 